Kenyon Martin

Pacers forward Danny Granger , the team's leading scorer, will be out for at least four weeks with a foot injury. The team said Tuesday that Granger would miss a minimum of four to six weeks with a torn right plantar fascia, the tissue across the bottom of the foot connecting the heel and toes. The Pacers say Granger won't need surgery and is starting rehabilitation. Granger left the floor in the third quarter of Saturday's game against the Clippers. Granger is averaging 24.4 points a game this season for the Pacers, who have lost nine of their last 10 games following a five-game winning streak.

So much for winning back Carmelo Anthony's heart … At full strength at last with Kenyon Martin back, winning 9 of 12 at home and with road games against the lowly Clippers and Kings on tap, the Nuggets were set to make their push. Unfortunately, with the Clippers and Kings bombing them back-to-back, it's time for Plan B, as in Back Up the Truck. And for the really bad news, not only is Anthony heading out after spurning extension offers, Chauncey Billups, Nene, J.R. Smith and Martin, all on expiring deals, may be too. Say good night to the Lakers of the Rockies.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Tulsa's credentials included 29 victories this season, two Sweet 16 appearances and NCAA tournament showings in six of the past seven years. Yet, the Golden Hurricane played in only one nationally televised game this season and entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 7 seed -- factors that had led its players and coach to wonder about the lack of attention. Coach Bill Self said his team has been overlooked in part because it hadn't beaten a top-ranked program, but that changed with yesterday's 69-61 win over No. 2 seed Cincinnati in the second round of the NCAA tournament's South Regional.

Pacers forward Danny Granger , the team's leading scorer, will be out for at least four weeks with a foot injury. The team said Tuesday that Granger would miss a minimum of four to six weeks with a torn right plantar fascia, the tissue across the bottom of the foot connecting the heel and toes. The Pacers say Granger won't need surgery and is starting rehabilitation. Granger left the floor in the third quarter of Saturday's game against the Clippers. Granger is averaging 24.4 points a game this season for the Pacers, who have lost nine of their last 10 games following a five-game winning streak.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- If patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel, complaining about officiating may be the last refuge for an NBA coach who could be staring down the barrel of trouble. On the eve of tonight's Game 4 of the NBA Finals, New Jersey Nets coach Byron Scott looked at the stat sheet, saw the San Antonio Spurs had taken 30 more free throws than the Nets, including 18 more in their Game 3 win over New Jersey, and declared that was a problem. "My personal opinion is something that I see with the officiating, to be honest with you," Scott said yesterday.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - There was a time when you could choke off the New Jersey Nets for about three quarters and coast to a victory, but that time has passed, as the Washington Wizards discovered last night at Continental Airlines Arena. The Wizards followed their game plan - keep the mistakes to a minimum and keep the Nets from running - to near perfection for most of three quarters, rolling to an 11-point, second-quarter lead. But Washington left just enough of an opening, especially in the third quarter, and the Nets barreled through en route to an 86-78 victory.

WASHINGTON - New Jersey Nets forward Kenyon Martin, the first pick in last season's NBA draft, may have a long and productive career if he remembers a valuable lesson he learned last night, namely never practice full disclosure with Michael Jordan. Martin, who had had some success early on guarding Jordan, made the decision in the second quarter to tell the 38-year-old legend that he was hurting a bit. Bad move, kid. Before Martin knew it, Jordan had torched him for 22 straight points during the second and third periods, one off his NBA record, on the way to 45 overall, in leading the Washington Wizards to a 98-76 win over the Nets before a sellout crowd at MCI Center.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Of all the things Jason Kidd has done to lift the New Jersey Nets into the NBA Eastern Conference finals for the second consecutive season, a game-winning shot is the one item that has been noticeably absent from his resume. With 22.2 seconds remaining yesterday in the Nets' 76-74 win over the Detroit Pistons and the score tied at 74 in Game 1 at the Palace of Auburn Hills, you could have gotten long odds against Kidd coming through after making only five of 18 attempts, but coach Byron Scott called his number anyway.

Kenyon Martin and Loren Woods will not be playing in this year's NCAA tournament because of injuries, but the performance of their respective teams without the two centers last week weighed heavily in the decision to bypass Cincinnati for Arizona as a No. 1 seed, selection committee chairman Craig Thompson said in a national teleconference last night. Martin sustained a season-ending broken leg early in the then-top-ranked Bearcats' first-round loss to Saint Louis in the Conference USA tournament, a tournament subsequently won by the Billikens.

So much for winning back Carmelo Anthony's heart … At full strength at last with Kenyon Martin back, winning 9 of 12 at home and with road games against the lowly Clippers and Kings on tap, the Nuggets were set to make their push. Unfortunately, with the Clippers and Kings bombing them back-to-back, it's time for Plan B, as in Back Up the Truck. And for the really bad news, not only is Anthony heading out after spurning extension offers, Chauncey Billups, Nene, J.R. Smith and Martin, all on expiring deals, may be too. Say good night to the Lakers of the Rockies.

NBA Cuban apologizes to Martin's mother Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban apologized to the mother of Denver Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin. Cuban made a crack after a Mavs loss in Dallas on Saturday in their NBA playoff series. According to Cuban, a fan called the Nuggets "thugs." Cuban looked at Martin's mother, Lydia Moore of Dallas, and said, "That includes your son." Martin's agent told the Denver Post that Cuban told Martin's mother that her son is a "punk." In a Tuesday post on Cuban's blog titled "An Apology to Kenyon Martin's Mom," Cuban wrote that he shouldn't have said anything.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- If patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel, complaining about officiating may be the last refuge for an NBA coach who could be staring down the barrel of trouble. On the eve of tonight's Game 4 of the NBA Finals, New Jersey Nets coach Byron Scott looked at the stat sheet, saw the San Antonio Spurs had taken 30 more free throws than the Nets, including 18 more in their Game 3 win over New Jersey, and declared that was a problem. "My personal opinion is something that I see with the officiating, to be honest with you," Scott said yesterday.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Of all the things Jason Kidd has done to lift the New Jersey Nets into the NBA Eastern Conference finals for the second consecutive season, a game-winning shot is the one item that has been noticeably absent from his resume. With 22.2 seconds remaining yesterday in the Nets' 76-74 win over the Detroit Pistons and the score tied at 74 in Game 1 at the Palace of Auburn Hills, you could have gotten long odds against Kidd coming through after making only five of 18 attempts, but coach Byron Scott called his number anyway.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - There was a time when you could choke off the New Jersey Nets for about three quarters and coast to a victory, but that time has passed, as the Washington Wizards discovered last night at Continental Airlines Arena. The Wizards followed their game plan - keep the mistakes to a minimum and keep the Nets from running - to near perfection for most of three quarters, rolling to an 11-point, second-quarter lead. But Washington left just enough of an opening, especially in the third quarter, and the Nets barreled through en route to an 86-78 victory.

WASHINGTON - New Jersey Nets forward Kenyon Martin, the first pick in last season's NBA draft, may have a long and productive career if he remembers a valuable lesson he learned last night, namely never practice full disclosure with Michael Jordan. Martin, who had had some success early on guarding Jordan, made the decision in the second quarter to tell the 38-year-old legend that he was hurting a bit. Bad move, kid. Before Martin knew it, Jordan had torched him for 22 straight points during the second and third periods, one off his NBA record, on the way to 45 overall, in leading the Washington Wizards to a 98-76 win over the Nets before a sellout crowd at MCI Center.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Tulsa's credentials included 29 victories this season, two Sweet 16 appearances and NCAA tournament showings in six of the past seven years. Yet, the Golden Hurricane played in only one nationally televised game this season and entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 7 seed -- factors that had led its players and coach to wonder about the lack of attention. Coach Bill Self said his team has been overlooked in part because it hadn't beaten a top-ranked program, but that changed with yesterday's 69-61 win over No. 2 seed Cincinnati in the second round of the NCAA tournament's South Regional.

NBA Cuban apologizes to Martin's mother Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban apologized to the mother of Denver Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin. Cuban made a crack after a Mavs loss in Dallas on Saturday in their NBA playoff series. According to Cuban, a fan called the Nuggets "thugs." Cuban looked at Martin's mother, Lydia Moore of Dallas, and said, "That includes your son." Martin's agent told the Denver Post that Cuban told Martin's mother that her son is a "punk." In a Tuesday post on Cuban's blog titled "An Apology to Kenyon Martin's Mom," Cuban wrote that he shouldn't have said anything.

Moves Baseball NATIONALS -- Agreed to minor league contracts with P Ray King and IF Pete Orr. PADRES -- Traded IF David Freese to Cardinals for OF Jim Edmonds and cash. Basketball NBA -- Suspended Nuggets F Kenyon Martin one game, without pay, for striking Hornets F Melvin Ely in head with elbow in game Wednesday. Football BILLS -- Signed WR Roscoe Parrish to contract extension.

Kenyon Martin and Loren Woods will not be playing in this year's NCAA tournament because of injuries, but the performance of their respective teams without the two centers last week weighed heavily in the decision to bypass Cincinnati for Arizona as a No. 1 seed, selection committee chairman Craig Thompson said in a national teleconference last night. Martin sustained a season-ending broken leg early in the then-top-ranked Bearcats' first-round loss to Saint Louis in the Conference USA tournament, a tournament subsequently won by the Billikens.